The statements in this section merely provide information related to the present disclosure and may not constitute prior art.
Sourcing building materials is essential for off-planet operations, yet transportation of building materials from Earth to an off planet location is prohibitively expensive, complicated, and time consuming.
Hauling each piece of equipment necessary for a mission from Earth to an off-planet location such as the Moon, Mars, an asteroid, or other celestial body is problematic because the launch vehicles utilized to deliver payloads to space (e.g., the Atlas V® vehicle (available from United Launch Alliance, LLC of Centennial, Colo.), the Falcon 9 v. 1.1 vehicle (available from Space Exploration Technologies, Inc. of Hawthorne, Calif.), and the like) have limited payload capacities, cost over $1,000 per kilogram to launch a payload, and have significant wait times and approval processes associated with launching a payload. Despite the difficulty of transporting materials off-planet, since the first missions into space and to other worlds, everything has been brought from Earth. The in-situ, on location materials have been studied but never utilized.
Utilization of in-situ resources found in space or on celestial bodies would enable exploration, study and exploitation of such environments in ways which parallel expeditions in the Age of Exploration. During the Age of Exploration, naval vessels explored the oceans in search of new trade routes and lands. During these expeditions, explorers “lived off the land,” catching fish, trapping game, and harvesting timber. Without taking advantage of local resources, such expeditions would have had to have been significantly larger and likely would not have traveled as far because transporting enough food, spare parts, fuel for fires and other materials would have occupied significantly more cargo volume. Samples of newly discovered flora and fauna were also gathered for study and exploitation upon their return. These explorers also sought and found rare minerals such as gold, which they shipped back to Europe for significant profit.
Upon reaching a newly discovered land, explorers often constructed small settlements from locally-sourced materials in order to more efficiently gather local resources. These settlements were also used to resupply other expeditions. Some also served as construction facilities (e.g., a shipyard), constructing ships, wagons, and other vehicles for use in transporting goods back to Europe or to other locations and for further exploration. Utilization of locally-sourced materials enabled self-sustaining settlements and colonies and enabled longer, multi-stop exploration or trading expeditions.
Exemplary resupply missions to the ISS utilize unmanned spacecraft, such as the Dragon capsule (available from Space Exploration Technologies, Inc. of Hawthorne, Calif.), the Russian Progress freighter spacecraft, or the Cygnus vehicle (available from Orbital Sciences Corporation of Dulles, Va.). The resupply spacecraft is launched into orbit carrying supplies including new equipment, replacement parts, fuel, oxidizer, food, water and scientific experiments. The spacecraft docks with the ISS and is unloaded. The spacecraft is then reloaded. If the spacecraft is capable of being returned to Earth and being recovered (e.g., the Dragon capsule), it is loaded with science experiments, old station hardware, equipment and trash. The spacecraft is then launched, returning to Earth for recovery. If the spacecraft is not capable of being recovered, the spacecraft is typically loaded with trash and launched where it burns up on reentry.
Trash management is problematic in isolated locations such as aboard a spacecraft, on naval vessels, and at remote outposts. In the ISS, all trash is stored on board in the habitable volume until it is disposed of as described above. Astronauts compress the trash by hand into stowage bags, but this can only reduce the volume by an estimated 50%. The present “store and return” method has limitations. For example, it will not meet the requirements for future human space exploration missions. Missions to deep space destinations such as the Moon, asteroids, Lagrange Points, and Mars will require different disposal methods. Ejecting trash into space, as practiced with liquid waste during the Apollo missions, is not practical or efficient for solid trash such as packing materials, broken equipment, and the like. With the possibility of resupply years between or nonexistent, astronauts must bring everything with them, meaning every piece of cargo is a precious resource. Furthermore, missions will need to safely manage waste and avoid polluting and contaminating other solar system bodies by, for example, abiding by NASA's Planetary Protection Policy (NASA NPD 8020.7. “Biological Contamination Control for Outbound and Inbound Planetary Spacecraft”).
Currently, recycling or repurposing materials in space presents several problems. Among traditional recycling processes do not function in the microgravity environment of space. Similarly, current recycling processes are not adapted for use in high acceleration and vibration environments such as those found aboard a naval vessel or submarine.
Given the foregoing, apparatus, systems and methods are needed which facilitate in-situ resource utilization in space and on other celestial bodies. Additionally, apparatus, systems and methods are needed which facilitate reducing mass and volume devoted to on-site habitats and equipment.
Additionally, what is needed are apparatus, systems and methods which facilitate sample and material return from off-planet sites such as the Moon, Mars, asteroids, and other celestial bodies.